Now I'm starting to wonder ............ Could Kimmie have gone to her Grand Prix events, done only easy double jumps, single jumps even, gone easy on her knee, finished low, but kept her bye intact? That way, she might have recovered in time for Nationals.

I don't think it has anything to do with integrity. She simply doesn't have what it takes right now to compete at Nationals. If she thought she could do very well at Nats, I'm sure she would go to the Grand Prix.

I feel bad for Kimmie not being able to compete, HOWEVER she hasnt said she is retiring & she is doing the right thing by taking care of her health first. Had she done the GP she could have made it worse or caused permanent damage, neither of which any of us want. I wish her a speedy recovery.

Kimmie, take heart, remember all those that came before you that have had to deal with injuries & came back. It honestly seems par for the course, especially those with longevity in this sport. In fact, I'm positive that 99% of skaters compete with injuries that we don't even hear about, it's part of sport, you know that better than anyone. So I'm not telling you anything you don't already know.

But what you have, as evidenced by all the good words about you, is what has & will bring you far ~ A Positive Attitude! ~ as Scott Hamilton has so famously said throughout his career:

Now I'm starting to wonder ............ Could Kimmie have gone to her Grand Prix events, done only easy double jumps, single jumps even, gone easy on her knee, finished low, but kept her bye intact? That way, she might have recovered in time for Nationals.

Yeah she could have- Amber Corwin had done that a few years ago. She had horrible outings- in one event falling on everything except a double axel and her bye was not taken away.

Meissner Pulls out of GP Series

I think Kimmie did the right thing. If she attempted to skate and injured herself further or permanently, that could have been the end of her skating forever.

Perhaps her injury will not be fully healed for months and skating at Nationals would not have been possible anyway. She would have to bring out everything she has for Nationals with the other ladies being so competitive. If she reinjured herself at Nationals that would have ended her Olympics bid even if she had made the team which I think was a long shot anyway.

I've always liked Kimmie as a skater and she seems to be a wonderful person. I hope she is not completely done, but I fear she may be. Kimmie seems so solid and sensible that I have confidence she will make good choices in both her career and life. If retirement is what she needs to do, then I wish her all the best. I'd also love to cheer her on as a competitor. I have a feeling that whenever she does retire, it won't be the last we hear from her.